At least 285 people executed in October alone, with public hangings and cases involving juveniles highlighting the regime’s escalating repression.
Iran witnessed one of the deadliest months in decades as at least 285 prisoners were executed in October 2025, marking a staggering surge in the regime’s use of the death penalty. The figure represents one of the highest monthly execution totals in the 21st century and signals a deepening human rights crisis.
According to newly compiled data, the number of executions in October 2025 was 1.7 times higher than October 2024 (171 executions) and more than triple the number recorded in October 2023 (92 executions). The current figures also vastly exceed those of October 2022 and 2021, when around 30 executions were reported each month.
Sharp Increase Throughout 2025
In the first ten months of 2025, at least 1,471 executions have been recorded — more than double the 703 executions registered during the same period last year. Among those executed were 45 women, and several executions were carried out in public, underscoring the regime’s intent to instill fear among the population.
Observers warn that the rapid escalation of executions points to a pattern of political repression and judicial abuse, where death sentences are often handed down following unfair trials or coerced confessions.
A Deadly Month Across Iran
The following cases, reported in late October and early November 2025, illustrate the widespread nature of the crackdown:
- Sunday, November 2, 2025: Ehsan Mahdipour was executed.
- Saturday, November 1, 2025: Mitra Zamani, a female prisoner, was hanged in Khorramabad.
- Thursday, October 30, 2025: Amirhossein Zahedi, 21, was executed in Mashhad, while Saeed Piri was hanged in Kermanshah.
- Wednesday, October 29, 2025: Sixteen prisoners were executed in multiple cities, including Mashhad, Kerman, Ghezel Hesar, Baft, Taybad, Zanjan, and Gonbad-e Kavus.
- October 27–28, 2025: Groups of prisoners were hanged in Sari, Bojnord, Gorgan, Ahvaz, Borujerd, Zanjan, Yasuj, Yazd, Nahavand, Qazvin, Semnan, and Malayer.
- Earlier in the month: Multiple mass executions were reported in Rasht, Isfahan, Dorud, Hamedan, Kashan, and Aligudarz.
Reports also include cases of individuals executed for crimes allegedly committed under the age of 18, as well as public executions described by witnesses as intended to intimidate communities.
Human Rights and Justice Concerns
Human rights advocates and international legal experts have repeatedly warned about Iran’s escalating use of the death penalty — particularly against political prisoners, ethnic minorities, and impoverished defendants. The growing number of executions has renewed global concern over:
- The absence of fair trial standards, including lack of access to independent legal representation.
- Secret or summary trials that fail to meet international judicial transparency requirements.
- The execution of juvenile offenders, in violation of international conventions Iran has signed.
Observers argue that this is not merely a legal issue but part of a systematic policy of repression aimed at silencing dissent and tightening control amid mounting social and economic crises.
Growing Calls for Accountability
International human rights organizations have urged global powers and the United Nations to press Tehran to halt all executions, ensure transparency in judicial proceedings, and allow independent investigations into the use of capital punishment.
They warn that continued engagement with the regime without addressing its human rights record effectively emboldens its machinery of repression and execution.
As 2025 draws to a close, the record-high number of executions underscores the urgent need for coordinated international action to hold Iranian authorities accountable for ongoing crimes against humanity and systematic human rights abuses.
